Guidelines for Health and Safety Standards in Early Years ...

1.1 Recommended Child: Staff ratios and Group size for Early Years
Educational Settings shall be maintained as follows during all hours of
operation:
Age Child-staff ratio Maximum group size
3 - 4 year olds 7:1 14
4- 5 year olds 10:1 20*
5 -6 year olds 12:1 22*
6 -7 year olds (Grade 1) 12:1 25**
7 -8 year olds (Grade 2) 15:1 25**
(When there are mixed age groups in the same room, the child: staff ratio and group size shall be consistent with
the age of the majority of the children).
*Kindergarten:
The recommended minimum indoor space standards that ensure academic achievement, health and safety for young
children (age 3 to 6 years) in the Independent Schools is 2.5 square meters per child. The KG classrooms in the
Independent Schools are approximately 55 sq. meters in size and therefore have adequate space for 22 children. This
amount of space per child is necessary to implement the Early Years Foundation Curriculum (2007) which requires
appropriate classroom space for learning centers and corners that are arranged to promote communication, exploration,
creative expression and self-awareness. International standards recommend that class size for pre-school and KG not
exceed 16 children in a group. It is recommended that Independent Schools consider reducing the number of children in
KG classrooms to 16-18 by 2010.
**Grades One and Two
The current recommended class size for primary grades is 25 children, with a strong recommendation to consider
reducing the number of students in Grade One and Two classrooms to 20-22 (by 2010).
2. Staff Professional Development
Teachers of young children need to be knowledgeable in all areas of safety, including fire
safety, traffic safety, water safety, poison safety and personal safety. Early years
programme staff are responsible for regularly checking the indoor and outdoor space for
health and safety hazards and they must be able to teach children safe behaviors,
including what to do in an emergency.
2.1 First Aid
All staff should receive training in pediatric first aid that includes rescue breathing
and choking. Teachers and assistants are informed of first-aid arrangements: location
of equipment and supplies, facilities and first-aid personnel, and emergency
procedures.
2.2 Risk Assessment
Risk assessment is a careful examination of the hazards in a setting and an assessment
of whether there are particular hazards that are likely to harm anyone. Risk
assessments are followed with recommendations for what precautions should be taken
to reduce the possibility of harm to individuals or property. All staff should be trained
in risk assessment and the identification of potential hazards for young children. (See
APPENDIX B for a sample risk assessment form)